


When The Time Comes To Let Go, To Let Go

by KawaiiPandaDesu



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Attempt at angst, Growing Up, Jaeno, M/M, nomin
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-18
Updated: 2017-10-20
Packaged: 2018-10-20 11:52:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 15,360
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10662018
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KawaiiPandaDesu/pseuds/KawaiiPandaDesu
Summary: “To live in this world you must be able to do three things: To love what is mortal; to hold it against your bones knowing your life depends on it; and, when the time comes to let it go, to let it go.”If those three things are what it means to live, then Jeno is truly living. Jeno has loved, and held his love against him, as if protecting it from all the harm in the world. And finally, when the time came for Jeno to let go, he lets go.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Here's a little teaser for the story! Updates to come very soon ^^v
> 
> Title taken from "In Blackwater Woods" by Mary Oliver

When I was a young boy, I lost my mother to breast cancer. A malignant tumour was found, and she had her whole left breast removed. From then on, she was on a strict routine of chemotherapy and radiotherapy. The doctors said she had more than seventy per cent chance to live, and the removal of the tumour apparently bettered her chances.

Yet fate decided to play a prank on us, and on my fifth birthday, instead of spending the day at home, opening my presents while blowing out my birthday candles, I spent my birthday in the waiting room of the emergency department in the hospital. Just as my mother lit the candles on the big ‘5’ shaped wax candle, she collapsed and convulsed on the spot. The initial shock of that moment was just the calm before the storm.

After hours of waiting in the designated waiting area, my father and I were finally lead to a room where my mother resided. She was in bed, with plenty of tubes and needles stuck in her. I heard my father and the doctor discussed my mother’s condition from where I was, at the foot of the hospital bed. Being five at the time, my vocabulary was very limited. Hearing the words ‘mortality’ and ‘relapse’ were new to me, and at the time, the meaning of those words didn’t really weigh down on me.

The doctor finished his chat with my father and left briskly. I had never seen my father look so tense before. The way he looked at my sleeping mother, it was as if he were afraid she would disappear at any moment. Mother woke up hours later, and began apologising profusely for ruining my birthday.

I told her it was fine, yet her worried frown never went away. Dad told mom what the doctor said to him, again repeating the new words I heard; ‘morality’ and ‘relapse’.

“He showed me the scan, and god, it’s everywhere. You lit up like a Christmas tree” my dad said, tears threatening to spill from his eyes. Mother looked in no better condition. For the first time in my life, I saw my father cry.

 

*:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

 

The second time I saw my dad cry was on my mother’s funeral. We stood in the rain as they lowered my mother six feet under. I cried and I cried as I kept asking my dad why they’re burying mommy. He didn’t respond, and he held onto me tighter than usual.

I remember my dad say in his eulogy, “She lived a good life”. His knuckles turned white from his tight grip on the edge of the podium.

‘A good life’ I thought, ‘Does living a good life mean dying from years of sickness, and leaving your loved ones behind?’ A part of me couldn’t fathom how a life like my mother’s was a good life, and I wondered what it meant or how to live a good life.

The last thing I remembered from the funeral was a lone pink carnation’s petals peeking from the newly shovelled land.

 

*:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

 

Later that night, I couldn’t sleep. I tossed and turned, yet no matter how hard I tried to get myself tired, my eyes won't shut. Getting off my bed, I grabbed my favourite teddy bear mother got me on my birthday, and went to what was once my parents’ shared room. The door was slightly ajar.

Peeking my head into the crack, I saw daddy sitting at the edge of the bed, hunched over with his hands on his face and shoulders sunken.

“Daddy,” I called out, and my dad looked back at me, eyes a little red. “I can't sleep, can I sleep with you tonight?”

For the first time that day, daddy cracked a little smile. “Sure buddy, lie down here next to me.”

 

I’ve slept in my parents’ room countless times before, but that night the bed felt oddly colder. Daddy brought me close to his chest, and stroked my hair in an attempt to get me to fall asleep.

“Where did mommy go?” I asked my dad suddenly. I could feel him tense against me, but returned to stroking my hair again.

“Mommy… went to visit grandma today baby” my dad replied. But… from what I recall, grandma’s already dead.

“Will mommy be coming back?”

My father hesitated, then he leaned back and looked at me straight in the eyes. He cupped my face with his hand and stroked my cheek with his thumb.

“J-Jeno…” Dad began, voice starting to waver. “Mommy… mommy will be staying with grandma for a while.”

“For how long daddy?”

“I don’t know, Jeno, I don’t know”. I rested my head on his chest, and he held onto me closer.

 

We stayed like this for a while. The sound of dad’s heartbeat slowly lulling me to sleep.

“Is mommy done living here, living with us?” I asked once again.

I felt wetness on top of my head. With a glance, I saw daddy’s tears staining his face, and falling on my hair. “I think she is Jeno”

“How about me daddy? How long will I be living here?”

“For as long as you can, baby”

 

 

“And how will I live, daddy?”

Daddy looked stern, carefully thinking about how to answer. “Very well” came my dad’s eventual reply.

 

 

 

I didn’t really know how exactly I’d be living ‘very well’. I didn’t know what living meant either, but I knew, somehow, I'd find out sooner or later.


	2. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jeno meets Jaemin for the first time

**2006**

 

 

Even after six months, going home alone is a routine I'm yet to get used to. Without my mother, who’d constantly hold my hand as we walk, who’d shield me with her umbrella if it’s raining or if it’s too sunny, who’d often take a detour to the convenience store to buy us both ice cream, I felt lonely.

As I walk through the path, I see all my other schoolmates with their parents. The smiles on their faces, the sounds of their joyous laughter, the sight of them being engulfed in their mothers’ arms… it somehow dug deeper into the hole in my heart. It made me yearn for my mother even more.

As much as daddy wanted to, he couldn’t pick me up afterschool. Firstly because his job required him to stay at the office until late in the afternoon, and daddy mentioned that they’d have a new worker coming in with them today and they wanted him to show the new person around. But I'm okay with it. Our house is only a five minute walk away from school and our area is relatively safe.

Halfway to my house, the clouds began to darken, and a sudden chilly wind breezed through the street. It seemed like it would rain. Hurriedly, I sped up walking in hopes that the rain doesn’t catch me.

 _Drip drop, drip drop_ I heard behind me and I sped up my pace again.

 _Pit-a-pat, pit-a-pat_ went the sidewalk, and before I knew it a light shower came falling down from the heavens. Not having anything to protect myself from the rain, I took my bag and held it above me in an attempt to keep me dry. It did little to do just that, but there's nothing else I could've done.

With each stride, the rainfall grew thicker, making the path wetter and more slippery. In a rush to get home, I lost footing and landed on the grass of the sidewalk. The dirt luckily cushioned my fall, making it hurt less than falling on concrete, but my fall caused me to lose grip of my bag.

A few inches away my bag lies lifeless with all its contents scattered on the side walk.

The weather had no mercy, and the wind blew and the rain fell harder. In a haste to pick up my stuff, I hadn’t noticed a boy with a bright blue umbrella walking my way. Picking up my last pencil, I noticed the rain stopped pouring. Pouring above me, at least.

When I looked up, I was met with large, brown doe eyes, and a bright gummy smile.

 

 

_That was the first time I met him._

 

 

“You okay? You should always bring an umbrella if it’s raining.” The boy with the wide smile said, not at all affected by the glum weather.

“I didn’t know it would rain and… my mommy isn’t with me” I replied, taking shelter underneath the boy’s needlessly large umbrella.

“Oh, that’s too bad,” He said. He gazed at the sidewalk and looked into the distance, as if thinking of something. Turning back at me, he said, “It’s raining too hard, and you’re already wet. Come back to my house and we’ll warm you up okay? My house is just nearby!” The boy grabbed my wrist, and before I can object he began dragging me to the direction of my neighbourhood.

“I’m Jaemin by the way. Na Jaemin.” The boy – Jaemin – said as he turned to give me a warm smile.

“J-Jeno. I’m Lee Jeno” I replied.

Within a few minutes, we reach Jaemin’s house which, surprisingly, is in my neighbourhood and is only three houses away from mine. It looks identical to most houses in the neighbourhood, complete with a nice front lawn, a shaded porch area and a driveway at the side of the house leading to the backyard. Jaemin dragged me into his porch and began knocking (read: pounding) on the door.

“Eomma! I’m home, and I brought a guest!” Jaemin yelled. A few shuffling here and there and the door opened revealing a relatively young looking woman with an apron on. She has Jaemin’s eyes too, round and large. She smiled at the sight of her son, but when she saw me her eyes widened, eyebrows almost lost in her fringe.

“Goodness, you’re all wet boy!” She said, ushering us inside their house. “Nana dear, please get our guest some towels, and some spare clothes from your dresser too please.”

On the way inside, I get a good view of the interior of Jaemin’s home. It looks nice and cozy. The walls were painted a nice shade of peach, family pictures hangs at the walls and vases of fake, but beautiful flowers decorate the various coffee tables scattered around the house.

After fetching the items, Jaemin gave it to me and lead me to their bathroom to get changed. When I got out and walked to their living room, two mugs of hot chocolate waits at the coffee table. As I sat down on their couch, Jaemin’s mom exited the kitchen along with Jaemin, who brought along a plate of freshly baked cookies.

“Oh, honey hand me your clothes. They must be wet, let me dry them for you” Mrs Na said. Handing her my wet clothes, I uttered a thank you and she rushed away, presumably to their laundry room. I felt a poking on my back, and I turned to see Jaemin with his mouth smothered in chocolate, holding out a cookie.

“Twy this Jeno, eomma makes the best cookies! They awe weally good!” He exclaimed, bits of food spilling from his mouth. The way he munched the cookie with his cheeks full like a chipmunk’s looked extremely adorable. I take the cookie and give it a tentative bite. True to his word they were really good, and before I knew it, I’m already on my second cookie.

Mrs Na came back in time to see half of the cookie plate already devoured.

“I see you’re liking the cookies” She chuckled lightly to herself before sitting on one of the couches.

“They're really good!” I replied, grabbing yet another one of Mrs Na’s delicious cooking.

“I’m glad to hear that. Oh! How rude of me. I’m Jaemin’s mom by the way, but you can call me Mrs Na or eomma if you want. We just moved here recently, so its nice to see my Nana already making friends.” She said, giving off that same wide smile as Jaemin. “It nice to meet you…”

“Jeno. Lee Jeno” I said, giving her a light bow. “Its very nice to meet you too Mrs Na”

After finishing off our cookies, Jaemin’s mom took the plate into the kitchen to clean it, leaving Jaemin and I to drink our hot chocolates. The hot chocolate was really, really good too. Not too sweet and very creamy, just the way I like it.

Jaemin’s mom came back with a mug of her own.

“So Jeno,” Mrs Na sat back down on the couch. “What brings you to our house?”

“I saw him running in the rain and trip and drop all his stuff. It was raining too hard so I brought him home with me.” Jaemin replied. Mrs Na gave a small nod.

“Whereabouts do you live Jeno?”

“Oh, I live just a few houses down.” I replied while sipping at my drink.

“Oh really?” Jaemin piped.

“Yeah”

“That’s awesome, we can totally go to each other’s houses to play if we want too!”

“Now, now Jaemin, you can't just go playing in people’s houses whenever you want. You need to ask their permission first” His mother reprimanded lightly. Jaemin gave a huff

“Jeno, I can come to your house to play, right? Right?”

A part of me wants to protest against it, but the happiness radiating off the boy was too much, a part of me wouldn’t dare make him sad. I nodded along anyway. Jaemin pumped his fist and did a little dance on the spot. His mother just watched in amusement.

“Does your parents know where you are Jeno?”

“No Mrs Na. But my dad will come back later in the afternoon”

“Oh, what about your mother sweetie?”

“Mommy…” I tried to say, but the memories were still fresh. I barely held myself back from tearing up. “Mommy went to visit grandma”

“Oh alright. Well, would you like to stay here until your daddy comes back?” I nodded, and Jaemin seemed excited about the plans. “Alright, Jaemin’s dad will be home soon too, so when he gets back we’ll drop you off to you house. How does that sound?”

“Good!” Jaemin and I said in unison, and we ended up laughing. Mrs Na watched us with a smile on her face, before taking our mugs and heading back to the kitchen. Jaemin tugged at my arm and lead me to his bedroom where we played with all his toys.

 

Five o’clock rolled by and Jaemin’s dad came home. He came into Jaemin's room to greet his son, and then he saw me.

“Oh, who’s this buddy?” Jaemin’s dad asked.

“This is Jeno appa, he’s my new friend!” I stood and gave him a light bow. Jeno’s dad smiled, eyes crinkling around the corners.

“Well hello Jeno, it’s very nice to meet you.”

From the kitchen, we heard Mrs Na call out to us. “Honey, I'm busy with dinner right now, can you please take Jeno home? It’s only a few houses down.”

“Sure dear.” Jaemin’s dad replied.

Perking up, Jaemin asked, “Can I come and walk Jeno home too appa?”

“Sure buddy, if Jeno doesn’t mind” I gave them a light shake of the head, signalling them that I didn’t mind in the slightest.

The short walk to our home consisted of me and Jaemin playing eye spy, and all the while I question how ‘I spy with my little eye something sticky’ is a tree.

(“It’s because trees have a lot of sticks, so it’s sticky!”

“Ooohhh”)

We reached our front porch. When we knocked, loud thuds were heard and the door busted open to reveal my dad, who looked very dishevelled. At the sight of me, he leapt forward and engulfed me in a bone-crushing hug.

“Oh, Jeno I was looking all over for you. You had no idea how panicked I was when I didn’t find you here. I checked your room, my room, the kitchen and the bathroom. Heck, I even checked under the sofa. I thought I lost you too, I thought I…” My dad trailed off, finally noticing the other guests. Recognition flicked through his features as he sized up the older man. “…Yuta?”

“Taeyong?” Jaemin’s dad replied, and gave a nice smile. I swear, Jaemin’s family all had really nice smiles. “So I'm guessing he’s your kid?”

“Yeah, he is. Why was he with you, did you find him walking around? Was he lost? Was he-“

“Relax Taeyong, he was at our house. Turns out were neighbours now too”

“Oh, really? That’s great” Dad replied, regarding Jaemin and his dad. “So I'm guessing this little one is yours?”

“Yeah, this is my daddy. I’m Jaemin. Nice to meet you Jeno’s dad” Jaemin said cheerily.

“Its nice to meet you too Jaemin.” Dad turned to his friend. “Thanks for bringing Jeno back home Yuta. I don’t know what I would’ve done if I lost him too, especially after…”

“After his mom?” Yuta asked, worry gracing his features. Dad gave him a light nod, staring at the ground.

“Your mom?” Jaemin asked. “Oh, Jeno said she went to visit his grandma. Will she be coming back? I would love to meet her!”

“Jaemin!” Yuta said sternly. “Sorry Tae, he didn’t mean to-“

“Its fine Yuta” Dad crouched down, eyes levelled with Jaemin. “Jaeminnie, Jeno’s right, his mom went to visit grandma. And sadly, I don’t think she’ll be coming back soon.”

“Aww, really? I would’ve loved to meet her. I bet she’s just as pretty as Jeno” Jaemin said, giggling lightly.

_Just as pretty as Jeno??_

“Yah! I'm not pretty, I'm a boy!”

“A pretty boy, Jeno” Jaemin said, giggling a little louder.

Dad and his friend watched in amusement, shaking their heads at our antics.

“You’re right Jaemin, Jeno’s just as pretty as his mom.” I looked at my dad, giving him me best hurt look. He only ruffled my hair in response. “I’m sure she would’ve loved to meet you too. You’re a very sweet boy”

“Thanks!”

Jaemin’s dad looked at his watch, and motioned Jaemin to follow him.

“It’s getting pretty late, we should probably head off. I guess I’ll see you at work tomorrow Tae” Yuta said as he picked Jaemin up and headed out of our yard. Dad and I followed them, seeing them off once they're at the sidewalk.

“Yeah, I’ll see you tomorrow. Say bye Jeno.”

I waved my hand, bidding them goodbye without having to say anything.

Jaemin looked at me from his dad’s arms and waved back. “Bye Jeno. It was nice meeting you today, I hope we become really good friends!” And with that, the father and son left for home.

‘ _I hope so too_ ’ I thought as I watched them.

 

*:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧

 

The next day, I found Jaemin standing by the school gates with a plastic bag. When he saw me, his bright smile made another appearance and he practically ran to me.

“Jeno! You left your clothes at our house yesterday!” He said as he handed me the plastic. Speaking of clothes, I still had the pair he lent me yesterday.

“Thank you Jaemin, I completely forgot. I still have your clothes at my house. Do you mind I give it back to you after my daddy gets back?”

“No worries! But hey, since our dads come back later in the afternoon, do you want to play at my house again?” Jaemin asked, eyes hopeful. It wouldn’t hurt, I suppose, so I nodded. “Yes! C’mon Jeno, race you to my house!” Jaemin said as he ran off. I laughed as I tailed after him.

 

 

There's something special about this Na Jaemin, I can feel it. Maybe it’s how easily he came to trust and befriend me. Maybe it’s the general happiness he exudes. Maybe it’s the way he smiles like there's nothing wrong with the world. Whatever it is, it helps numb the pain in my chest. I hope I don’t see him walking out of my life anytime soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello hello! I know I said on AFF that I won't be posting anything until I make sure I completed most of the story, but some things came up and I got ideas and now I'm not sure anymore. BUT FEAR NOT! I know how the story will go now, and I have made my plans. The only thing stopping me now is lack of inpiration, procrastination and general laziness. Also keep in mind that I'm in my final year of high school, and unfortunately I needa start improving my work since at the rate I'm going, I aint getting into the university I want to enter .-. I will try (lol) to keep updates constant (and by that I mean at least once a month). I thank you for your patience thus far.
> 
> I'm still at the establishing characters and relationships stage, so don't expect the angst to come just yet. Also, I might re-write the first chapter again since I'm veeeeeeeeeeeeeeery unhappy with it atm. Hope you enjoyed this chapter!
> 
> Comments, and kudos are much appreciated!


	3. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Jeno, promise me we’ll always stay together?”

**2007**

 

 

“Jeno-ya~” Jaemin sang outside my bedroom window on a Saturday morning. Opening my eyes, instead of the warm, bright sunlight greeting me, I'm faced with a wild Na Jaemin whose face is (unattractively) pancaked onto the window glass.

“Must be a nightmare” I said before returning back to my blanket’s loving embrace. I heard shuffling here and there before I felt a weight dip down on the side of my bed. I peered up from my blanket, and yet again I am faced with Jaemin’s face. Only less pancake-y.

“Yah, it’s not a nightmare, it’s really me,” Jaemin declared as he took the blankets away. I looked at the clock on the wall opposite my bed and it read 7:03 am.

 

 

**_7:03 am_ **

 

“YAH” I whisper-screamed. 7:03 in the morning. I should be asleep right now! “Its seven in the morning, I shouldn’t be awake for another hour!”

“Aww, but I just got my new toys in the mail this morning! I thought I'd open and play with them with you” Jaemin replied, a pout forming on his lips. Oh no, he’s giving me that look again. “I-I thought you’d love to play with them with me too. I’m sorry for bothering you, I guess I’ll just go-“

“No!” I cut him off. “Uhh I mean no, I'm sorry, I wasn’t thinking. Yes, I'd love to play with your new toys with you, thanks for thinking about me.” I told Jaemin, and the tell-tale signs of his pouts disappearing.

You see, Jaemin may seem like a happy-go-lucky kind of child (which he is), but over the time I've known him I come to learn that he’s also extremely sensitive. Exhibit a), when he teared up after seeing two baby puppies play with each other when we walked pass the local pet store. The final blow to his weak little heart was when one of the puppies bit its brother’s ears playfully. I had Jaemin crying onto my shoulder for a good three minutes (“Tears of cuteness overload” he reasoned) before I cheered him up with the offer of ice cream. Exhibit b), and the hardest way I learned this lesson; Jaemin offered me some cookies at home one day. I told him it was a tad too sweet, and he ran home crying, telling his mother that “Jeno thinks my cookies are the worst!” It was a blatant lie, of course, but that didn’t stop him from not talking to me for a week.

So back to our current situation.

“Of course Jeno, I’ll always think about you!” Jaemin said as he tried to give me a hug. I’m not too big on skinships, but Jaemin loves it. Again, just to please Jaemin I let him hug me anyway despite me sitting up awkwardly.

The smell of bacon and eggs wafts in my room, signalling me that dad is probably up and already making breakfast. “Have you had breakfast yet Nana?”

“Uhh, nope. I came here as soon as I got the mail. Eomma’s cooking at home, so I should probably go back”

Before I can stop myself, words came blurting out of my mouth. “Well, you're already here. Want to have breakfast with me and my dad?” Jaemin’s eyes lit up at the prospect, and nodded vigorously.

“Would I!” Before I even got out of my bed, Jaemin was already out of my room, heading straight to the kitchen screaming ‘Good Morning Mr Lee!’ Dad nearly dropped his morning coffee from the sudden commotion. Dad and I are relatively quiet people, and having Jaemin over is always… well, it makes the happening in our house more interesting.

Jaemin sat at our table, waiting patiently. “G-good morning Jaemin.” My dad replied, looking at me with a confused expression. “How did-“

“Through my window” I replied before dad even finished asking. Dad nodded in understanding and returned to cooking breakfast. This hasn’t been the first time Jaemin’s done this, so dad’s pretty much used to it by now.

“Will you be joining us for breakfast Jaemin?” My dad asked, flipping the bacon from the sizzling pan.

“If that’s alright with you Mr Lee”

“Of course it is Jaemin, our household is always open for you”

‘ _A little too open’_ I thought as I took a seat next to Jaemin.

Dad finished off cooking breakfast and we ate in a comfortable silence. “So what plans do you boys have today?” Dad asked as he glazed over the morning newspaper.

“My new toys came in the mail this morning, and I want to open it with Jeno.” Jaemin replied, mouth full of food. The grease form the bacon slowly dripped down to his chin, and I grabbed a napkin to wipe it off. Jaemin looked back at me with a grateful expression. “Thanks Jeno” he said, bits of food spilled from his mouth, reminding me of the first time we met. I shook my head in amusement as I went back to eating my food.

“New toys?” My dad inquired.

“Yeah! Well, they're technically not new, they were appa’s when he was a kid. Appa’s eomma sent it here from Japan!”

“Japan?” I inquired this time

“Yeah! Appa’s Japanese!”

“Really?”

“Yeah! Haven’t I told you?”

“No…” I said, still a little surprised by the new information.

“Oh, sorry. But yeah, appa’s from Japan and his last name’s Nakamoto. He moved to Korea when he was in university, and that’s when he met eomma. When they got married, eomma kept her last name so it would be easier for people to spell and write her name with Na instead of Nakamoto. And when I was born, my parents found it easier if I took my mother’s last name too” I nodded my head in understanding.

We finished breakfast a little later. After helping my dad wash and dry the dishes, Jaemin and I went to his house, but not before informing my dad of our whereabouts.

“We’re gonna have so much fun!” Jaemin said as we walked down the path to his house. “Appa said there’ll probably be lots of his favourite toys there, so maybe it’ll have lots of Pokémon toys. Appa always did like Pokémon.”

When we reach the front of his house, I spot a large cardboard box near the door, presumably the toys. Jaemin and I lifted the box to his room. Despite its size, it was surprisingly light. We pass by the kitchen, greeting Jaemin’s mom along the way, before settling the box in his room.

Grabbing a pair of scissors from his desk, Jaemin cut along the tape and opened the box. Within it, a number of old toys and trinkets were found. One by one Jaemin took them out. So far Jaemin’s found a medium sized Pikachu plush, a tiny xylophone with one tile missing, more Pokémon toys and two old empty Pokéballs. Finally, at the bottom lies two colourful beaded bracelets, one a sapphire blue, and the other a light peach.

“They look nice” I said, marvelling at the simple yet elegant bracelets. The beads had light scratches and the little rope holding it together is a little worn. It had obviously been used by someone else before but overall it still looked neat. Jaemin took them, rolling it between his hands.

“Yeah, they're neat” Jaemin placed the bracelets back in the box and grabbed all the other toys. “I’ll ask appa about them later. C’mon Jeno, let’s go play with these in the back yard.”

I helped Jaemin carry the other toys to the back yard. After settling them at the warm grass, Jaemin’s mom peeked out of the sliding doors leading to the back yard and called out to us. “Boys, I have cookies cooking in the oven. I’ll call you when they're ready”

“Thank you” Jaemin and I said together.

Taking the Pokémon toys out, we split the figurines equally. We pretended to be real Pokémon trainers, and complete with the empty Pokéballs, we put the Pokémon figurines in the balls, and threw them just like they do in TV. We ran around, chasing each other with our figurines, imagining it to be like a real life Pokémon battle.  “Pikachu use thunderbolt!” Jaemin would yell, shaking his Pikachu while making a ‘ _zzz_ ’ sound.

After getting tired from our chase, we lied down on the grass, looking up onto the cloudy sky. From there, we’d take turns in making out things from the clouds. One cloud looked like a lollipop. Another, Jaemin pointed out, looked like a bird.

“Hey Jeno,” Jaemin said, pointing at a cloud formation. “Don’t you think that looks like a duck?” Following his finger I see the cloud in question. After a careful inspection, I see that it looked more like a rabbit to me than a duck.

“Eh, it looks like a rabbit to me”

“A rabbit? Nooo, it’s definitely a duck!”

“How does that look like a duck?”

“Look at that long bit. It looks like the duck’s beak. How does that look like a rabbit to you?”

“Well, that ‘ _long bit_ ’ looks like the rabbits ears. I still think it’s a rabbit”

“Its not!” Jaemin said defiantly

“It is!”

“Is not!”

“It is!”

“Is not!”

“It is-“ I was cut off when Jaemin sat on top of me and covered my mouth with his hands.

We tumbled back and forth until we both ran out of breath. We’re back to lying on the ground, staring back at the sky again but now breathing heavily. For a while, we just gazed at the sky, admiring nothing in particular. I heard a slight rustling from beside me, and when I turned Jaemin looked at me dead in the eye, sporting the most serious expression I've ever seen on him.

“Jeno, I just want to say how grateful I am to have you as my friend” Jaemin said, smile melting through his serious expression.

I don’t know where this came from all of the sudden, I reply, “Me? Why me though? You have plenty of friends at school. They're certainly more fun than I am…”

“I do have plenty of friends, but none of them as special as you are Jeno. I know I’m a handful and can get a little annoying, and you're always so patient with me. I never had a friend like that. Other kids just get angry and leave me, but you didn’t. That’s partly why my parents and I moved. Aside from appa getting a new job, I never really had much friends and it worried my parents a lot. They were so happy when you came over to my house for the first time, they even said ‘ _our Nana finally got a real friend’._ I guess I'm trying to say you’re my bestest friend, and I'm glad I have you. I’m really glad I met you that day in the rain.”

His statement made me feel oddly warm. That warmth spread from my chest, to my head, and throughout my body. I couldn’t even help the smile forming on my face. To be this special to Jaemin felt… amazing.

“I’m glad I have you too Jaemin. To be honest, I'm glad I met you that day too. After what happened to my mom, I felt so empty. After meeting you that day, my days felt a little brighter. You make me happier. Thank you.”

Content smiles grace our faces as we gaze longingly at the cerulean sky.

 

*:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧

Later in the afternoon, Jaemin’s dad came home from coaching the local soccer team. Jaemin once said that his dad loved soccer and that he was in the national team when he was still in high school. He had to quit it though because his parents made him choose between soccer and accounting. He chose accounting eventually and left to study in Korea. But even then, when he’s free on the weekends, Jaemin said he’d usually play a casual soccer game with people in a local club or in the park.

Jaemin also mentioned that his dad was absolutely ecstatic when he heard there was a part time coach position available at their local club. He got the job pretty easily considering that only he and another man applied. The only difference was that the other man couldn’t care less about the job and only wanted the quick cash, whereas Jaemin’s dad was absolutely dedicated to the sport and practically breathed for soccer. Thus, Mr Nakamoto’s weekend mornings are spent coaching young, aspiring soccer players.

Mr Nakamoto found us lazing about in their backyard, eating the cookies Mrs Na baked. Jaemin’s dad walked over to us, dropping his gym bag at the side and joined us in the grass. Out of the corner of my eye, I see him steal a cookie too…

“What's up boys?” He asked, trying (but failing) to hide his munching on our cookies.

“Nothing much, just playing around with your old toys and having old men steal your food” Jaemin said, giving his dad a nasty side glance. Mr Nakamoto guffawed, ruffling Jaemin’s hair as chocolate chip bits spill from his mouth. Looks like I know who Jaemin takes after now. Jaemin’s dad look around at his old toys scattered around the yard, something akin to childlike adoration and excitement in his eyes.

“Hey, I remember you guys” He said as he walked over to pick up the Pokémon figurines. He spots a few more of his stuff and collects them all. “I remember you, and you. Oh, and you too” Mr Nakamoto holds the toys in his arms, looking at them as if they were his babies. One by one he sets the toys back on the ground, and then he spots the two bracelets Jaemin and I found.

“Oh,” Jaemin said, regarding the accessories in his father’s grasp. “Jeno and I found them at the bottom of the box. They're really pretty, where’d you get them from, appa?”

Mr Nakamoto had a light smile on his lips, as if reminiscing on his old memories. It’s odd, it’s as if I too can feel the nostalgia just from looking at the sight of Mr Nakamoto right now. He holds the bracelets up, looking at it through the sunlight.

Mr Nakamoto gave the bracelets back to Jaemin and said, “These bracelets were very special to me. My best friend and I used to wear these as a sign of our friendship. We’d never leave the house without wearing these bad boys.” Mr Nakamoto gazed at the sky, a fond expression on his face. “We promised each other that we’d wear these bracelets until the day it breaks, he said it was a sign of our dedication to and the strength of our friendship. But sadly, things came up and his parents had him packing his bags and returning home to China the day after.” He finished, a frown starting to furrow on his eyebrows.

Jaemin and I sat in shock, having your best friend forcefully taken from you would be terrible!

“Why did they leave Mr Na? And what happened to the bracelets then?” I asked.

Mr Nakamoto looked at me with a sad smile. “Business reasons. Turns out that my friend’s family was filthy rich back in China, and that their family was only in Japan to look out for the Japanese branch of their company. Before he left, I remember him mentioning that there was a major problem back at his home and that there was a chance that he might not come back to Japan again.”

Mr Nakamoto gave it to Jaemin. “Sadly, he never came back. Before he left, he even gave me his bracelet. He told me it wouldn’t be right if he kept them when he’s be breaking our promise of staying together for a long time. I didn’t blame him though, it was totally out of our control. He said I should give the bracelet to someone who deserves it, someone who can keep the promise of staying by me for a long time. I got a few good friends here and there after he left, but my relationship with them were nowhere near as close as my best friend’s”

“And then what happened?” Jaemin asked, eyes widening at his father’s story.

“Well… I grew up. I eventually forgot about these bracelets as I started middle school. My best friend and I ceased contacting each other after a few years too. We just… drifted apart. I got busy as I continued with soccer and my studies, then I got into university here, and the rest is history.”

Jaemin and I looked at the bracelets in wonder. They had so much history for such small accessories, it must mean a lot to his dad. A part of me is jealous though, Jaemin’s dad had such a strong bond with his best friend when he was younger, I can only hope that my friendship with Jaemin will turn out just as strong, if not stronger, than Mr Nakamoto’s.

Mr Nakamoto stood, and made his way back to the house. Over his shoulder, he called out “It’s yours now Jaemin, give it to your best friend and show the world how strong your friendship is.” Once he was gone, were back to staring at the bracelets in wonder again.

_Who would he give it to? Is the person he’s going to give it to really close to him? Will they be best friends forever? Or will they be split apart like Mr Nakamoto and his friend? Will they stay together for a long time?_

Dozens of questions swarm my head as I wonder how Jaemin will handle the bracelets. I was too deep in thought to even notice what Jaemin was doing. From the corner of my eye I see his lips moving, but the words fell deaf on my ears.

“…Jeno!” He called out, finally snapping me into reality. I try to recall what he just said, but to no avail.

“Ah sorry, I was spacing out. What did you say again?” Jaemin rolled his eyes, a habit he picked up from TV over the few years. I rub my nape in embarrassment.

“I said, you should take the other bracelet Jeno.” He said, a little more firmly this time. He held out the accessory, waiting for me to take it.

“I-I should take this?”

“Of course, you’re my best friend, aren't you?” Jaemin’s eyebrows furrowed at the question.

“I am, but…” I hesitated, thoughts a little jumbled. “I just… I don’t think I'm worthy? I don’t know if I’ll be a very good best friend.”

“Jeno that’s dumb, you're already the bestest friend anyone could ask for, what kind of an excuse is that?” Jaemin took my hand and rolled on the sapphire blue bracelet. He admired the new accessory on my wrist. He then rolled on the peach bracelet and took my hand. “Jeno, you don’t have to worry about not being a good best friend when you already are one. Remember what I told you? You were the only one who had the patience and stayed by my side after a while, and to me that such a big thing. If you're capable of doing that, then I'm certain you’d fill the role of being my best friend very well”

Jaemin lets go of my hand. “Jeno, promise me we’ll always stay together?” Jaemin said, holding out his pinkie.

Intertwining his pinkie in mine, I gave it a light shake. Smiling as I turned to Jaemin, I replied, “Okay. I promise”

 

 

*:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧

 

(Jaemin’s dad/Yuta’s POV)

Looking through the window’s blinds, I see Jaemin put the sapphire blue bracelet on Jeno. And just then, it’s as if I travelled back in time, and instead of my son and his friend, I see myself and Sicheng in their place. I see the vision of Sicheng placing the sapphire blue bracelet around the wrist of my younger self.

 

_“Lets stay friends for a long time, okay Yukkuri?”_

_“Hai, forever Win-kun”_

 

“Sicheng…” I said under my breath. What I told the boys was only the sugar-coated version of the story. What I didn’t mention to them was how devastated I was when Sicheng left. It was as if a part of me was forcibly ripped off, and locked away on a really high shelf that I’ll never reach. I'd never want those boys feel the same pain that I did.

I snapped out of my vision and I see Jaemin and Jeno intertwine their pinkie fingers. The small gesture brought a smile to my lips. They're friendship is new, but over the course of the year I've watched those two grow and their friendship strengthen.

“Jeno… Jaemin…” I thought as I walked away from the window. “Please, learn from my past and don’t leave each other’s side. Make your friendship last.”

 

 

Right now, I can only hope. And for those two, only time can tell.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Sooo I have a problem. I'm not sure about the flow of this story atm. I feel like its so messy and hard to comprehend. Do you guys think that? Do you understand whats happening in the story right now? Please, please give me feedback if you think I'm doing something wrong, or if something is unclear. I'm seriously doubting if the story is any good so far. The story makes sense in my head, all of it but when I get writing i feel like I'mm getting a bit carried away. Long story short please provide me feedback about my writing if I did something really good or bad. It will help me write this story better for you. Thanks for reading!


	4. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel so dumb i can't believe i forgot to post it when i wrote this a month ago like????
> 
> Forgive this author TT

**2008, August 13**

 

 

The last thing I expected to be doing on any Sunday morning is getting out of the house. Getting out of bed at all actually, but for the sake of friendship, I give up the comforts of my cool, air conditioned room in favour of enduring the intense summer heat. I've walked ten metres from my house and I can already feel perspiration trickling down my hair and tickling my nape. The little wagon I'm bringing along became heavier under the heat all of the sudden.

Today is Nana’s birthday and I've spent most of the last two months doing chores around the house to get some extra pocket money. I really want to give Nana something special, it’s only fair since he planned a surprise party for me on my birthday. According to dad (who was also part of the planning for my surprise party, that traitor), it took Jaemin almost a month of planning to put my party together. The party only consisted of my dad, Jaemin’s parents, Jaemin and I, but the small gathering was enough. I’ll never forget that party, mainly because I had so much fun, and because Jaemin took a picture of me crying after the came out and surprised me, intent on treasuring that one moment forever.

For Jaemin’s birthday I was at a complete and utter loss of thoughts. After my party I created and scrapped so many ideas for presents, but none of them were good enough, they weren’t as special as the surprise party Jaemin prepared for me. Like in cartoons, I wrote on pieces of paper, only to scrunch it up and throw it away until my trash can was filled to the brim. A part of me felt bad for wasting so much paper, I feel like the trees in heaven (do trees even go to heaven? Or is there a special tree heaven just for trees? We’d never know) are shaking their heads at me from up above for my utter disrespect for their corpses. Sorry Mother Nature.

It wasn’t until a few days later, in the same week as my birthday, when I was smacked in the face by a great idea. Literally. A small, brown tabby cat came falling from a tree, directly on my face as I looked up when I heard rustling above me. I guess this was karma from tree heaven. One moment, I was enjoying the walk home from school with Jaemin, and then the next minute _BAM_! I got a ball of fur slammed against my face. In a struggle to get it off, the darn thing’s claws scratched my face more than once, and it'll definitely leave a mark.

After eventually ripping it off my face before it could tear it to smithereens, I threw it away about a few metres from us and held onto my face in pain. In the midst of relishing in my misery, Jaemin had the _audacity_ to even think of the cat after it assaulted my face.

“Jeno!” Jaemin yelled as he ran towards the cat. “How could you do that to such a cute little thing?!”

“Me?! I was attacked! I can believe you care more for the cat than the actual injured perso-“

Of course, Jaemin completely ignores me as he goes and picks up the cat, cradling it against his chest like a mother to her baby. “Shh, it’s okay little kitty, Nana’s got you. I won't let that mean ol boy hurt you again” Jaemin strokes the kitty’s head as he gives me his nasty side eye.

“I see how it is. Way to show me the extent of our friendship Nana, I see now that a mere feline is more important than me. Oh, woe is me” I said dramatically, hopefully inciting _some_ reaction from my best friend

Of course, I'm yet again ignored. Jaemin continued stroking its fur while I take a good look at the cat. As it nuzzled its head on Jaemin’s hand, I notice a brown collar on its neck. The brown of the collar blended in so well with its fur, you would’ve missed it if you weren’t looking closely. I walk towards them to get a closer look, but the darn thing hissed and clawed at me in the air. Jaemin defensively hugged the cat tighter, as if he was intent on keep me away as far from it as possible.

“Go away Jeno, you're scaring the poor thing” He said defiantly.

Scrunching my eyebrows, I reply. “No. Look, that thing has a collar. The owner’s probably looking for it.”

Jaemin gave it the slightest glance. “No, it doesn’t have a collar. You're just saying things just because you don’t like it. Oh! And since it doesn’t have an owner, I’ll just keep it, what do you say little buddy?” As if understanding him, the cat mewled and nuzzled itself deeper into Jaemin’s chest.

Content with the proposition, Jaemin went on his merry way home with the kitty in his arms. “I can't believe you,” I said, scoffing. “If you actually looked at it properly, you’d see that it has a collar. Its owner must be worried sick looking for it right now! It’s as if you lose all rational thinking and common sense when something cute is involved.”

“Hey, if that were the case, I'd lose all rational thinking whenever I spend time with you. But that doesn’t happen a lot does it?” He said with a subtle wink.

“Huh?”

“Oh god, you're so dense. How will you ever find a girlfriend?”

I feel like he’s implying something, but what? Before I can reply, we heard someone shout out behind us.

“Haechannie!” A boy who looks like he’s around our age exclaimed as he ran towards us. The cat meowed happily, leaping off Jaemin’s arms with its feline grace, and leaped towards the unknown boy’s open arms. The boy hugged the cat with so much affection in his eyes, it must be the owner.

“Is this your cat?” I asked, taking in the boy’s appearance. He had short, black hair, average height, and pretty almond shaped eyes. He also had a cute beauty mark on his neck, I was tempted to poke it.

“Ahh yes, this is Haechan, he ran away from me. Naughty boy” the cat flicked its tail in annoyance at its owner before leaping off and walking away. I’d laugh, but my face still hurts from the scratches. “Oh, did he scratch you? Are you okay?” The boy reaches out to feel the scratches, but not before Jaemin reaches out and swats his hands away.

“He’s fine thank you. Maybe if you didn’t lose your cat, he wouldn’t he hurt right now.” Jaemin said, a slight annoyance lacing his voice. He glares lightly at the boy, but he pays no heed.

“Sorry about that, it’s his bath time and he usually runs away when he sees me bring out the sponges” He laughs embarrassedly, rubbing the back of his nape. He notices Haechan straying away again and runs to him.

Over his shoulder, he yells out “I’m really sorry about everything, I’ll treat you the next time you see me okay? Oh, and my name’s Mark. I’ll see you again soon!” And with that, the boy is gone. I turn my head to look at a slightly peeved off Jaemin.

“What a weirdo” I heard him say under his breath. “What an awful cat too”

“Excuse me, awful cat? Last time I checked, you wanted to take it home with you“ I said with a huff.

“Yeah, well that was after he tried to touch you, and after I saw that cat’s awful attitude.”

‘ _The cat’s just like you though’_ I almost said, but since I value my life more, I keep quiet.

“Well why do you care if he touches me?”

“I-I…” Jaemin stutters, tips of his ears turning pink. “I just do, okay? I don’t want other people touching my best friend”

“Oh, a little possessive now are we?” I said, wiggling my eyebrows suggestively.

The pink from Jaemin’s ear spread to his whole face. He turned away from me, all while muttering a quiet “shut up”. I laughed, sparing him from anymore teasing.

Silence fall between us as we continue our way home, the friendly intimacy we built over the years saving us from any awkwardness. Jaemin hums along to a song as we walk, routinely giving the low branch of a tree we always pass on our way home from school a high five. Just as we turned around the corner that lead to our street, Jaemin perks up.

“I wonder what it’s like to have a cat” He says nonchalantly, but I sense a feeling of longing underneath it. “I wish I had a cat. I'd play with it all day, cuddle with it on the couch while we watch TV, and maybe take it to your house so we can both play with it.” He sighs as we reach the front of his house.

“Do you really want a cat that badly?” I asked as Jaemin walks up the driveway leading up to his house’s front door.

“I guess, but I'm bad at taking care of pets. I had a pet hamster once but ran away. I had pet fishes too, but it got eaten by a stray cat because I accidentally left them near the widow for quite a while. I don’t really think I'm cut out to own a pet.” He said, a sad smile gracing his lips. “I’ll see you tomorrow Jeno.” He didn’t even spare me a glance as he closed the door, he must be really bummed.

 

 

Later that night, I thought about that cat again as dad disinfected the scratches on my face. I hissed as the alcohol made contact with the wound, and dad smiled at me apologetically.

“Dad, can we get a cat?” I asked suddenly. After gazing at the scratches on my face again, he gave me a questioning gaze.

“A cat?”

“Yeah. It’s just, I thought it’d be nice to have some other company when you're busy with work.” I tried to look as pitiful as possible, hopefully guilt tripping dad to convince him to get me one. The moment I jutted out my lower lip, I knew I won.

With a sigh, dad relented “Alright, you can have one, I guess.” Before I can even throw a party in my head, my dad continued. “But you should know that taking care of a pet is a lot of responsibility. You have to feed it, clean up after it and everything. Do you understand Jeno?”

“Yes dad” I replied

“Alright, but buying a cat from a store is really expensive, I think it’s best if you adopt one instead.”

“Okay dad”

Since that day, I did extra chores so I get extra pocket money. I had to do the dishes, sweep the floor, heck, I had to clean the bathroom every other week. It was gross and exhausting work, but I pushed through it.

 

\--

 

I was pulled out of my memories as I entered the cool, air-conditioned reception area of the local animal shelter. Behind the reception desk, there's a door that I assumed lead to the animals at the back. My suspicions proved true when a lady came out from the door and I heard various animal noises behind her.

The lady saw me and went straight to the desk.

“Hello!” she said cheerily, “My name’s Taeyeon, welcome to the shelter. How can I help you?”

I fumbled around with my bag, getting out all the relevant documents and the two months’ worth of pocket money. “Hello Taeyeon-sshi, I'm here to pick a cat?” I placed the signed documents on her desk and she read through it.

“Ah yes, I was informed a boy would come by here for an adoption. You’re Jeno, correct?” I nodded. She stood from her seat and led me towards the backdoor. We walk down a lit hallway, passing by many unmarked doors.

“What's behind all those doors Taeyeon-sshi? If you don’t mind me asking.”

“I don’t mind at all sweetie. The first four doors we passed are for storage. That’s where we keep all the food, toys, equipment, and medicine for the animals. All the other doors lead to the animals. We made sure that all the birds, dogs, bunnies, cats and all other animals are separated, wouldn’t want an animal riot here now do we?” We both chuckle.

Taeyeon and I reach the furthest door in the hallway, and were immediately greeted by excited mewls and meows. The room for the cats was huge. The farthest left-hand corner had tons of food bowls, each filled with different types of cat food. On the opposite side, rows upon rows of litter boxes are lined up against the wall. There was also a mini play area for the cats, complete with scratching posts, balls of yarn, and squeaky toys. And finally, adjacent to the play area was the cats’ sleeping quarters.

“Here’s our cat room, all cats in here has been de-sexed and has had their claws surgically removed so they don’t cause much trouble when they're older.” She explains, closing the door behind her swiftly to ensure none of the cats escape. “I was excited for you to come actually, not many people around adopt cats. They usually go for dogs since they’re the more popular option, or birds or rabbits if they want a pet that doesn’t need much maintenance. Some of the poor cats stay here for a while, it takes about a few months until someone adopts them compared to the few weeks the other animals wait.” Taeyeon lead me to the play area, where a few of the cats play around with the toys.

A few cats caught my attention. There's this sleek white cat that walked around gracefully with its tail high in the air. It had different coloured eyes, one blue and one green, and it made it look really pretty. There's this orange tabby that looked really energetic, pouncing from yarn to yarn, and even going up and down the mini slide a couple of times. There's also this big, fat, white cat lounging by the food area. Tubbs was the cat’s name according to Taeyeon, and she said if I considered adopting him, I needn’t buy much toys for it. But rather, spent that money on more food because that cat can sure eat.

There was so many cats to choose from, I can't possibly pick a favourite one. Hearing the front desk’s bell ring, Taeyeon left me to pick a cat while she serves the new customer.

I walk around, trying to find a suitable cat. A few cats walked to me and rubbed their bodies against my leg affectionately. One cat placed a ball of yarn in front of me, and I threw it away lightly, watching the mob of cats chase after it.

I was almost decided on picking a cat, Tubbs who ate and ate cat food, until a pair of cats at the far corner of the sleeping area caught my attention. They were fairly small, I'd assume they were about a few weeks old. They had light grey coats and distinctive black patch on their eyes. I observe their behaviour from afar, and I immediately decided I wanted those two.

One of the cats, the one with the black patch on its left eye, sat peacefully, eyes following the other cat. The said other cat, one with a black patch on its right eye, bounded up and down, and around its brother.

I saw Jaemin and myself in those cats. I was the quiet, reserved one, and Jaemin was the very active and animated one. It was also uncanny how it resembled us too. The cat with the patch on its right eye had really large, round eyes. The other had slightly smaller ones, but it scrunches into crescents when it yawns.

“They're perfect” I hear myself say as Taeyeon walks back into the room.

“Made your choice?” She asked. I nodded in return and pointed to the two cats in question. “Which one though?”

“Both of them”

“Ahh,” She said as she went over to pick the two cats up. The cat with the large eyes hissed and clawed cutely at Taeyeon, but stopped as soon as it saw her pick up the other cat. “Good choice. These two hates leaving each other's sides.” Taeyeon explains. “If you take this one” she motions at the wide eyed cat, “The other just mewls and pouts really sadly. It almost broke my heart when I nearly gave his brother away. And if you take this one,” she motions at the slant eyed cat, “The other will start hissing and clawing at you, Like just then.”

We walked back into the hallway, entering one of the storage rooms. “You can't really separate these two from each other, that’d be heartless. I'm glad you decided to take both of them” She lead me through the storage room, motioning to the multitude of pet essentials. “Now, as part of the adoption pack that you chose, you're entitled to get a bed, litter box, feeding bowl, a toy, a collar and a month’s worth pack of cat food for your pet at a highly discounted price.”

I looked in awe at all the items up for selection, there was so much to choose from. There were cat beds, litter boxes and food bowls with varying sizes and in all the colours of the rainbow, toys that ranged from squeakers, to balls and plushies, collars of varying designs and about ten different brands of cat food. “I don’t normally do this, but since we have so many cats in stock I’ll let you pay for just one of the cats” Taeyeon said as she places the two kittens into a large cage.

I look at her surprised, but at the same time very relieved since I didn’t think I'd have enough money if I have to buy two cats worth of essentials. “Really? Thanks so much Taeyeon-sshi!”

Taeyeon just waved it off “It’s no problem, really. I should be the one thanking you actually, these cats are in desperate need of a good home. You’re doing me a favour for taking them.”

I pick out the equipment hastily, needing be home as soon as possible so I can set up the surprise for Jaemin. I pick out a large, cream coloured bed that had a thick but soft padding and a furry cover. I get a large litter box of similar colour and two plastic feeding bowls. For the toys, I got a little stuffed rat and a bumpy, blue ball. Finally, I got one pack of the cheapest cat food in the selections. I placed all the items in a little wheeled basket I found at the corner of the storage room. Before we went back to the reception area, Taeyeon took three more packs of the same cat food that I got and dumped it into my basket. “It’s on the house” she said with a smile.

After a few more signing and the final transaction, the cats were finally adopted and ready to be taken into a loving home.

“Do you have an idea of what to name them?” Taeyeon asked just before I left. Honestly, I haven’t even thought about names until she mentioned it. But since its Jaemin’s birthday, I guess I’ll let him decide.

“No, not at the moment. But I’ll have one soon.” After thanking Taeyeon for the last time that day, and promising to drop by again soon when the food runs out, I began my way home.

The walk home was worse than the walk to the shelter. It’s as if the weather became twice as warm. It was so hot to the point where I can probably cook eggs on the concrete.

 _Meow, meow_ went the cats, possibly from the irritation from the heat. I stopped on the spot and turned towards my wagon where the cats in the cage sat. I took the large bed and placed it on top of the cage to give them some shade. Looking into the little metal bars, the kittens look somewhat calm. The rambunctious one of the two seemed less energetic, lying on its back while its brother laid on top of its stomach.

I mumbled a quiet “Cute” before continuing my way home.

 

Dad was a little surprised when I came home with two kittens after expecting only one, but he was happy nonetheless. He complimented the kittens, stating that they're very adorable and looked really fluffy and cuddly. Again, dad reiterated all my responsibilities as a new pet owner and I just nodded along in agreement.

“You should invite Jaemin today, I'm sure he’d love to play with them” Dad said as he helped me set up our living room for the cats. While placing the bed and food bowls at the room’s corners, the kittens ran around, chasing the bumpy ball as it bounded to and fro.

“Yeah, I will.” I look over to the clock above our living room TV and it shows 2 p.m. Jaemin should be home right now, so I decided to take the cats and bring it over to his house.

After knocking on their door, Jaemin’s dad opened up and greeted me.

“Hey Jeno, here to see Jaemin?” he asked with the usual smile.

“Yup! And I brought along my present too” I replied as I held up the kittens in my arms. His’s eyes widened, eyebrows almost lost in his fringe.

“You bought him cats?! That’s really sweet and thoughtful of you Jeno, but I don’t think Jaemin’s cut out for pets…”

“Oh, I know about that, don’t worry Mr Na. I’ll be the one keeping and taking care of them. I’ll just let Jaemin play with them.”

“Ah, ok. That sounds good. Jaemin would be ecstatic when he sees this. You’re too good to him sometimes Jeno.” He said with a chuckle. “Although, Jaemin isn’t home right now, he said he went out with some school friends since they're treating him out for his birthday. Didn’t he tell you?”

Actually, no he didn’t. Furrowing my eyebrows I replied, “No. It’s the first time I'm hearing about it.”

“Really? I could've sworn you’d be the first one he tells. But no matter, do you want to come inside? I think I'd like to play with the kittens too if you don’t mind?”

“Sure.” I set the kittens down on the ground, and the two happily pounced into the Na household. Jaemin’s dad and I followed them, watching as they run around the living room. I take out the little ball of yarn I brought from home out of my pocket, and I threw it lightly. The kittens followed the ball of yarn, and when they reached it they bit into it and passed it to and fro. The wide eyed cat brought the ball to Mr Na and he took it, holding it up for the kittens to reach and claw at. Their attempts at leaping and reaching the yarn was adorable, they’d balance on their hind legs and propel of the ground with their paws high in the air. They almost looked like they’re giving the air a high five. Mr Na eventually gave them back the ball of yarn and went to get a small bowl of milk for the cats.

A few hours of playing with the cats and lounging about and watching cartoons on the living room TV, Jaemin still hadn’t come back from wherever his friends treated him out to. Looking at the clock, it read 5:30, and I need to be home for dinner in about half an hour. I took the kittens and the ball of yarn and I told Mr Na that I'm off.

 

 

Dad and I finished dinner, and by then it’s already 7pm. After helping dad with the dishes, I take the cats with me again and went to Jaemin’s house. I knocked on the door and Mrs Na opened the door for me this time.

“Looking for Jaemin?” She said expectantly. I gave her a nod, and she replied with a sigh. “I’m sorry Jeno, but Jaemin still isn’t back yet. He just called though, he said he was on his way home right about now. Would you like to come inside and wait?”

“Thanks Mrs Na, but I think I'll just come back tomorrow with the cats.” The cats let out loud mewls as if agreeing with me and Mrs Na cooed.

“Those cats are so adorable. They remind me of you and Jaemin so much.”

_‘I know right?’_

“It really is kind of you to adopt cats so Jaemin can play with them Jeno. You're too good to our Nana sometimes.”

“Funny, Mr Na said the same thing too” I said with a chuckle.

“Well, there's a reason we said it” With a final wave, Mrs Na closed the door and I began my way home. As I stepped onto the footpath, however, I changed my mind at the last second. I turned on my heels and walked back to the Na household’s front porch and sat here to wait for Jaemin. It wouldn’t hurt to wait a few more minutes, right? I placed the cats in front of me and the ball of yarn to keep them occupied.

I stare off into the distance while waiting to kill some time, occasionally picking up the kittens and replacing them between my legs when they stray off a little too far. I find myself gazing at a lamp post as I wait.

The yellow light was bright, the soft hues reminding me of the sun’s rays as it reflects off the clouds. The light was bright, making my eyes hurt from staring at it for too long. The light was bright, but not as bright as Jaemin when he smiles. When he smiles, as if everything else in the background disappears, and all I see is Jaemin’s upturned lips and his pearly white teeth.

It occurred to me before that Jaemin is attractive. Though I believe his smile is probably his most attractive feature, I think his delicate looks and his eyes deserve some credit too. I’ll never admit that to him though, last time someone complemented him on his looks aside from me, my dad or his parents, he spent the entire week wearing a face mask and sunglasses, worriedly stating either “if people see my handsomeness, they’ll fall in love with me and I'd hate to reject so many people” or “Oh my gosh I'm famous. I can't walk anywhere without getting recognized. Jeno, what if I have stalkers? Sesaengs?!?”. Moral of the story, feeding his ego would often lead to him being more annoying than usual, and more headaches for me.

My eyelids begin to feel a little heavier as time passes by. The kittens are already asleep on the ground from all the playing today. I scoop them up and rest them on my thighs. I rest my head on the porch’s supporting pillar, and before I knew it, the world turned black.

 

\--

 

“ _-eno”_ I heard someone say. I'm too sleepy to realize who it was.

 _“Jeno”_ The voice said again, and it’s starting to annoy me.

“Five more minutes dad.” I say while swatting at the empty air. The voice giggled an all too familiar giggle. I open my eyes slowly, and wide eyes, button nose and a beautiful smile materialize before me.

“Good morning Jeno” Jaemin said with another giggle. Normally, I'd be happy to see him, but I'm still slightly peeved off since he didn’t tell me about his little outing with his other friends. He must've noticed my annoyed expression, so he tilts his head a little and asks, “What's wrong?”

“You went out to a party without telling me. I’ve been waiting here since the afternoon.” I say with a pout, looking at the ground to avoid eye contact with Jaemin.

“What do you mean I didn’t tell you? Didn’t you see my text last week?”

 _His text from last week?_ My clueless expression probably gave away my thoughts, hence Jaemin rolling his eyes.

“Actually, a better question. When was the last time you used your phone?” He asks with a slightly amused smile.

I reply sounding a little unsure myself, “I’d say… about two weeks ago?” Giving off an embarrassed chuckle, Jaemin only returns an unamused look. “Look I’m sorry okay? I'm not really used to having phones…” Jaemin and I recently got flip phones a few months ago after pleading our parents for weeks. Honestly, I didn’t really want one, but Jaemin insisted that we both get it so we could talk and text to each other all the time.

Jaemin sighs, “I guess I should’ve known. I should’ve just told you in person, so I guess were both at fault” He gives me an understanding grin then continues, “But why are you still here though? You could’ve just texted me a happy birthday and that would’ve been fine.”

I give him a little chuckle before motioning to the sleeping kittens on my lap. The effect on Jaemin was instantaneous. Just like his dad, his eyebrows raised so high up his fringed covered it. His eyes were wider than saucers and his jaws dropped to the floor.

“I-is that…”

“Yup” I reply, lifting the kittens and cradling them on my arms. “Happy birthday Jaemin”

He suddenly engulfs me in a tight hug, but keeping a little distance in between us as to not disturb the cats.

Jaemin whispers a soft but emotional “Thank you” on my ear before pulling back and giving me yet another one of his megawatt smiles. My insides felt tingly, as if there's a light buzzing in my chest. It was weird but not unwelcomed. We stayed like this, gazing into each other's eyes as if we had all the time in the world. I didn’t even realise I was staring until a light mewl came out from the sleeping kittens.

Jaemin snapped; took his gaze away from me and looked intently at the cats instead. His face looked a little red, but from under the shadow cast by the streetlight, it’s a little hard to tell. Jaemin then took his phone out of his pocket before flipping it open to check the time.

“Oh gosh,” he said, turning his phone to show me the illuminated screen. “It’s already past eight, how long were you out here for?”

“Not too long, don’t worry” I lied with a small grin. A little lie wouldn’t hurt right?

“Well, it’s late. You should get home, you must be tired.” He motioned me to get up and shooed me away to my house.

But before I even set a foot on the footpath, I was yanked back by the shoulder and Jaemin planted a quick peck on my cheek. I coloured at the gesture

“Thank you again Jeno. I think this is officially my best birthday ever” He walked back to his house and gave me a wave as he got in his front door. Over his shoulder he said “Text me when you get home okay? So I know you got back safe”

 

 

Staring up at the ceiling, I replay today’s events in my head. A part of me still can't believe I bought cats. I never really imagined owning any pets, but having the kittens now felt nice so far. I was about to close my eyes and go to sleep, until I suddenly remembered something really important. Grabbing my phone, I texted Jaemin.

**_To: Nana [10:18]_ **

_Jaemin!! I forgot to tell you, you need to_

_name the cats!_

**_From: Nana [10:19]_ **

_Dude, its 10:20 why are you still up?_

_Also you haven’t named them yet???_

**_To: Nana [10:19]_ **

_No, its 10:19 you're a minute off. And_

_no, I haven’t named the cats. I was_

_thinking that I'd let you name them_

_since its your birthday and all._

**_From: Nana [10:20]_ **

_Well its 10:20 now and I'm tired and sleepy_

_What did I do to deserve you, really? I bet_

_I must've saved the world in my past life._

_Beat that Mulan. But seriously, you're_

_too nice for your own good sometimes._

_Hmm, what to name them…_

**_To: Nana [10:22]_ **

_Mind if I make a suggestion?_

**_From: Nana [10:22]_ **

_Go ahead_

**_To: Nana [10:22]_ **

_The kitten with the wide eyes. I want to_

_name it No Jaem_

**_From: Nana [10:23]_ **

_No Jaem???_

_Why?_

**_To: Nana [10:24]_ **

_It reminds me of you, no fun_ _ㅋㅋㅋ_

_Plus, it sounds like your name too._

_Na Jaem and no Jaem. Never seen_

_a more matching pair :’)_

**_From: Nana [10:25]_ **

_Okay, rude. And no, we’re not naming_

_our kitten No Jaem._

**_To: Nana [10:25]_ **

_:(_

**_From: Nana [10:26]_ **

_Oh stop. Wipe that frown off that handsome_

_face of yours._

**_From: Nana [10:27]_ **

_I got it! I know what to name out cats now._

**_To: Nana [10:28]_ **

_Ohh, do share_

**_From: Nana [10:29]_ **

_Lets name them… *drum rolls*_

_Nomin and Jaeno!!_

**_To: Nana [10:30]_ **

_Huh?_

**_From: Nana [10:30]_ **

_I got them from our names. I put them together._

_What do you think?_

**_To: Nana [10:31]_ **

_Perfect :)_

**_From: Nana [10:32]_ **

_Hehe glad you think so :)_

_Its late, you should go to sleep Jeno!!_

**_To: Nana [10:33]_ **

_So should you. Good night Jaemin._

**_From: Nana [10:33]_ **

_Good night Jeno. Sweet dreams xoxo_

 

 


	5. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Long-ass author's note at the end, just saying. And this isn't proofread at all so forgive the mistakes. I'll look over them later Until then, enjoy the update!

_2008, October_

The school bell resounded throughout the school, signalling the end of the day. After swiftly packing up my things, I made my way to the school gates. I spot Jaemin by the gate’s metal frame and I gave him a wave. When I reached him, he took his bag that was resting on the ground and we made our way home.

“Hey Jeno,” Jaemin said as he rummaged through his bag. “Wanna come to my house and play Tekken 4 with me? Chan let me borrow it this morning, he said it’s really good!”

“Hmm. I don’t know, I still have that homework to do for Mr Park’s class…”

“Aww, c’mon Jeno. Just a couple of rounds? Only for at least half an hour? Then you’ll have time to finish the homework. Please?”

At the sight of those puppy eyes… What else could I do?

 

*:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧

 

“Ha! Beat you again Jeno.” Jaemin yelled as he fisted the air in victory. The screen displayed his character’s winning ending scene with my character lying on the ground.

“That’s no fair, my character was hard!”

“Jeno, you literally just spam the buttons as Eddy. That’s how easy he is. Maybe you're just bad” He said as he poked his tongue at me.

“I’m not bad!”

“Yes you are”

“No I'm not”

“Yes you are”

“Am not”

“Are too”

“Are not”

“Are to- OW” Jaemin exclaimed as a punched his arm lightly. He held and rubbed onto the spot on his arm that was hit, as if it hurt more that it should’ve. “You’re so mean Jeno”

“Well you're rude.” I replied before restarting our game again.

About fifteen minutes passed before we stopped playing and started doing out homework. We moved from the living room to Jaemin’s room and we set out all our things on the floor.

In the middle of my math homework, I sneak a glance at Jaemin who’s currently busy with his science homework. What struck me, however, was the faint purple patch on Jaemin’s arm where I hit him earlier. I’m fairly sure I didn’t hit him hard enough for it to actually bruise, but it still worried me. I was about to apologise for hitting him until I saw more bruises I hadn’t noticed before. All along his forearms, they're littered with small, purple pigmentations blooming like flower buds in the spring. Under his shorts, I can see a fairly large yellowish bruise on his thigh, and a couple on his shins.

I guess it came from the soccer practices he’s been attending with his dad. He recently gained an interest in the sport after watching one of the teams his dad coached one game, but he’s still undecided about joining. He’s attended his third practice so far, and on the one time I watched him play I almost got a heart attack from the many times he tripped and bumped onto other people. He usually gets back up with a smile so some of my worries are eased.

But still, those bruises weren’t there last week, and to have that many bruises on his body solely from soccer?

 “Nana, you seem to have a lot of bruises lately” I said, observing the new dark purple patch that bloomed on his arm.

“Oh, really? I guess I'm just clumsy,” Jaemin replied as he laughed, eyes crinkling. “Don’t worry Jeno, I'm fine.”

“If you say so…”

We turned back to doing our homework. At that moment everything seemed fine, like it was just any other normal day at the Na’s residence. Jaemin had his back propped against the wall with a pillow nestled on his bottom, while I laid down on my stomach across the floor, adjacent to Jaemin’s legs.

Everything was normal. That is, until I notice little splattering of red on the floor. Looking up at Jaemin, I discovered a steady stream of red running down his nose.

“J-Jaemin… your nose” I said, scrambling to get up.

“Oh no” Jaemin tried to wipe off the blood with his shirt, but it didn’t help one bit. The front of his white T-shirt becomes drenched in his blood, and the steady trickling from his nose doesn’t cease for a second. My stomach churned at the sight. “Jeno, can you please get my mom?”

I ran out of his room as fast as I could, but not before taking a couple squares of tissue paper from the bathroom across Jaemin’s room and tossing it to him as I pass his door. I found Jaemin’s mother in the kitchen, preparing us snacks.

“Mrs Na, Jaemin’s nose is bleeding and it won't stop.”

Mrs Na’s reaction was instantaneous. Dropping her utensils, she ran to the bathroom and took out sheets upon sheets of tissues. She instructed me to get an ice pack from the freezer, which I obediently followed.

I return back to Jaemin’s room only to find my best friend sitting shirtless on the floor while Mrs Na tried to remedy his bleeding with the tissues. I handed her the ice pack and she muttered a silent thank you.

“Aish… not again” I heard Mrs Na say under her breath.

“…Again?” Mrs Na gave me a despairing look.

 “This is the third time this week Jeno, and it’s only Tuesday. It happened a lot last week too” she said as she placed the ice pack on Jaemin’s nose. Jaemin sat still, head leaned back in an attempt to stop the bleeding. Our eyes met, and he gave me a reassuring smile, a smile that says ‘I'm alright’

“Are you planning to take him to the doctor anytime soon Mrs Na?”

Mrs Na gave a nod in reply, then said, “Yes actually, we were planning on taking him there next week, but since he’s bleeding again I think I’ll need take him there now” Mrs Na took Jaemin’s bloodied shirt and went to the laundry room. Jaemin shivered from the lack of clothing, so I took his blanket from his bed and lightly wrapped him in it. Mrs Na came back into the room with fresh sheets of tissue paper on one hand, and her phone on the other.

“Hello? Yes, I had an appointment for my son Na Jaemin next week? Is it possible to move the appointment forward? Jaemin’s nose is bleeding again, the clotting doesn’t start until five minutes later. Yes, and he’s getting a lot of bruises too lately…” Mrs Na said over the phone, changing the tissue papers on Jaemin’s nose. “You have a slot in twenty minutes? Yes, I'd like that. Thank you very much”

Mrs Na hangs up from the phone and turns to me and Jaemin.

“So we’re going to the doctor’s now?” Jaemin asked, voice slightly laced with nervousness. Mrs Na sighed and give Jaemin a little nod.

“I’ll go get your stuff ready. Go get a shirt and meet me at the car in five minutes okay?”

Mrs Na exits the room, leaving me and a still bleeding Jaemin. Jaemin took my hand in his and gave me a fearful look. “Jeno, please come with us. I don’t want to go to the doctor without you. What if they poke needles in me?” He asks with a worried frown. Jaemin’s helpless state hurts me so much, if only I could wrap my arms around him and protect him from all the bad things that’s happening to him, I would’ve done so in a heartbeat. If only I had the power to do so.

Placing my other hand on top pf Jaemin’s I gave it a reassuring squeeze and said, “I’ll come with you, don’t worry. If they do need to use needles, I’ll hold your hand through it okay? I’ll be there for you. Just let me text my dad so he knows okay?” Jaemin returned a shaky smile before taking off the tissue from his nose. It’s been about eight minutes now since the bleeding started, and the fountain of red that still continues to ooze shows little signs of ever stopping. I took a few sheets of tissue and folded it in half before rolling it into little bullets. I gave it to Jaemin, who plunked it in his nostrils. The tissues acted as a cork, stopping the blood from dripping out. But not for long.

I ran to Jaemin’s dresser and took out the first shirt I saw. Helping him up, I placed his blanket back on the bed and put his shirt over his head. While he shuffled into the shirt, I took the broom and dust pan sitting outside his room and scooped up the bloodied pieces of tissue from the floor. There were some red splotches on the ground, but it can wait later.

Mrs Na’s car honked from the outside, signalling for us to hurry up. After taking our necessary things, we got out of the house, locked the door and went straight into the car.

“Oh, you're coming with us Jeno?” Mrs Na asked as she reversed out of the drive way.

“Yes Mrs Na, if that’s alright with you”

She replies a quick “not at all”, and were off.

 

The hospital was about a fifteen minute drive, which probably means we’ll be a couple of minutes late for Jaemin’s appointment. Within that car ride, I sent a quick text to dad.

 

 

**_To: Dad [4:43]_ **

Dad, on my way to the hospital.

Its not me, its Jaemin.

 

**_From: Dad [4:45]_ **

_Jaemin?? What happened? Is he alright?_

**_To: Dad [4:45]_ **

I don’t think so. He got a bloody nose but it

didn’t stop for a while. Mrs Na said that they

were already scheduled for a hospital check-up,

but Jaemin’s bleeding again so they pushed the

appointment forward.

 

Can you please tell his dad? I don’t think Mrs Na

could've told him in the rush.

 

**_From: Dad [4:49]_ **

I just told him, and he’s freaking out. We just

got permission to leave the office, expect us

at the hospital in a few.

**_To: Dad [4:49]_ **

Alright, see you there.

*:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧

After making our way into the hospital, Jaemin’s mother quickly talked to the lady at the counter in the Emergency Department and we were lead through multiple hallways to Jaemin’s doctor’s office.

The nurse explained that the doctor will be back shortly and left us in the room. We sat down in front of the doctor’s desk as we waited. I look around and noticed that the room is just like any other stereotypical children’s doctor’s room; the walls are painted a bright hue of pink and purple, there was a little area full of toys and trinkets for kids, an examination table with the mattress covered with a Pokémon-themed bedsheet and a jar of lollies on the corner of the doctor’s desk.

The golden name plate on the doctor’s desk read _Seo Youngho, Paediatrician_ in large, embossed letters. Along the wall behind the doctor’s seat is a row of framed certificated, presumable from the doctor’s college or something. Finally, on the doctor’s side of the desk sat a framed picture with who I assume to be the doctor and his son who looked very familiar. In the middle of racking my brain to find out where I'd seen the boy’s face before, the doctor came bursting through the door while shrugging on the other half of his white coat.

“Hi,” Dr Seo said as he took a seat, “Sorry for the wait, I had a few paper work to finish up for a surgery”

“S _urgery?!”_ Jaemin whispered with shock beside me, the slight tremble of his hands made visible.

“That’s quite alright doctor Seo, it’s great that you can fit us in at all in your busy schedule.” Jaemin’s mom replied while she rummaged through her bag.

Dr Seo replied, with a chuckle, “Please, call me Johnny ma’am. And it’s quite alright, your call did sound urgent. You're lucky the last appointment just got cancelled.”

Mrs Na gave Jaemin’s baby book and all other relevant documents that she took from her bag to Johnny. With a quick skim, Johnny read through all documents. On the little speaker on his side, Johnny pressed a little button and spoke into the piece, “Ten, can you please get me the records for Na, Jaemin? Thanks!”

Moments later his assistant, Ten, came with a large manila folder with Jaemin’s name on it. After a quick scan over the files, Johnny put all the documents aside and faced us.

“So what seems to be the problem?”

Looking over at Jaemin, I notice him fidgeting on the spot and playing with the hem of his shirt. Mrs Na wraps her hand around Jaemin as she says in a concerned voice, “Jaemin’s having a lot of problems the past three weeks. It started off with bruises. At first it didn’t really bother me since, you know how kids are all roughhousing? I thought that he got them from normal rough games. He just recently joined a soccer team too so I wasn’t too worried. It wasn’t until two weeks ago when I noticed how easily he gets bruised and how long it takes for the bruise to disappear.

“He hit his side on the corner of the kitchen table. He had this huge purple bruise but,” Mrs Na motioned Jaemin to stand up before lifting his shirt slightly, just revealing the faint purple bruise on his torso. “He got this two weeks ago, the bruise should’ve been gone by now, yet it’s still here.”

Johnny nodded his head, scribbling on a piece of paper as he does so. Mrs Na continued, “He also recently started getting bloody noses. I thought that maybe it’s from the heat, but even in the air-conditioned rooms he’d start bleeding out of nowhere. This continued on all of last week, and then the start of this week. It also took a while for the bleeding to clot.”

Letting out a hum, Johnny tapped his pencil on the side of his desk as he looked like he’s deep in thought. He stood up from his seat and motioned for Jaemin to sit on the examining table.

Jaemin leaped off his seat and followed the doctor to the bed. From there, the doctor took Jaemin’s shirt off and put on his stethoscope. He checked for Jaemin’s heart beat from the front and back of his chest, and for his lungs as the doctor asked Jaemin to give a cough.

Afterwards, Johnny checked Jaemin’s ears, mouth and eyes. He lifted Jaemin off the chair and gave him his shirt back. When Jaemin sat back down to his chair, the doctor already had a treat ready for him; a large, sugar-free lollipop. That was when Johnny noticed me beside Mrs Na.

“Oh, hello there. What's your name?” He asked in a kind tone.

“Jeno. Lee Jeno.”

The doctor nodded and asked, “Are you his brother?”

“Nope, I’m his best friend.” Jaemin nodded along and the doctor hummed in acknowledgement. Dr Seo finished writing notes on his little notepad and turned to me and Jaemin.

“Alright boys, I need to talk to Jaemin’s mother in private for a while, if you go out this door and turn to your left, it will lead you to a hallway. Go straight through that hallway until you reach the very last door on your right, it’s the hospital’s playroom. It has toys, games and a TV so make yourselves at home there okay?”

Jaemin and I looked at each other before following the doctor’s orders. We hopped off our seat before reaching for the door. Before we walked far of the hallway, Jaemin suddenly turned back into the room.

“Excuse me doctor, but can I have another lollipop for my friend? I’d feel bad if I was the only one who got one.” Jaemin said with a pout. The doctor gave a hearty laugh before complying, digging out a red lollipop from his jar before giving it to Jaemin. My best friend bowed thankfully before joining me back outside the room.

Before we left for the playroom, I closed the door behind me. As the door slowly closed, I caught sight of the doctor’s very stern look he gave Jaemin’s mother. It gave me a terrible feeling in my stomach, but I decided to push the feeling down as my best friend beckoned me to hurry up.

 

*:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧

 

_(Third person POV)_

 “Well Mrs Na, based on my observations, it seems that this isn’t in my area of expertise,” Johnny took out a call card from his desk drawer and gave it to Mrs Na. “Here’s my colleague’s card. Moon Taeil is a specialist in oncology”

It wasn’t until a few moments later when the implication hit her like a ton of bricks. She took a sharp breath and covered her mouth with her hand. With a shaky hand, she reached out for the call card on Johnny’s hand while focusing on calming her speeding heart rate.

“Oncology… but that’s cancer?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M BACK AND IM STILL ALIVE!!!! (barely)  
> Okay, first off, you're probably expecting this already but I AM SO SORRY! I truly overestimated my abilities to write and give consistent updates. Which is really stupid af considering that A) I have a history of losing interest in any task real quick once I get bored and losing motivation faster than a prostute spreading his/her legs, and B) I'm in my final year of highschool and homework, tests and exams weigh me down so damn much. I'm sorry for not keeping my promises, and from now on I will do my best to be more realistic with setting expectations and making smart promises.   
> Hence, I can promise you all now that I will definitely finish this story even if it takes me a hundred years, or if Jaemin never comes back to NCT (I pray to the heavens above that doesnt happen), even if my arms get chopped off, I will finish this story. Now, I can't promise update times but yeah, I will finish it eventually. I'm having my final exams that determine wether or not I go to university next week so I wanted to post a story and a chapter before then. I've done that so far, which is good as I'm working on my goals one step at a time. My final exam is in November 14th, so i should have more free time then. But then again I'll have to go job searching and learn how to drive so theres that.   
> If you've made it this far I want to APPLAUD YOU FOR STICKING WITH ME THIS LONG. You have no idea how grateful I really am for you readers, and I hope that you stick with me till the end even if this story is cliche and awful.


End file.
